Bethlehem Area denied request by Lehigh Valley Dual Language Charter to operate in two locations.

October 29, 2013|By Adam Clark, Of The Morning Call

The state Charter School Appeal Board has upheld Bethlehem Area School District's ruling that a local charter school cannot expand to a second location.

The appeal board last week granted the district's motion to quash the Lehigh Valley Dual Language Charter School's appeal of the school board's decision in August to block its planned expansion.

The charter school had hoped to move about 150 students from its Thomas Street school to Mullen Hall, 395 Bridle Path Road. The charter school, which expanded this year to add seventh grade, had hoped to move grades 5-7 to the new location.

Instead, it moved its administrative offices to the new location while it appealed the district's decision. The charter school is expected to announce Wednesday whether it will appeal the latest ruling.

The appeal board agreed with the district's argument that state law prohibits charter schools outside of Philadelphia from operating in more than one location.

The charter school had said it planned to appeal based on a court case that allowed Montessori Regional Charter School to operate in two locations in Erie County.

In its decision, the appeal board stated that the Montessori court decision did not include discussion of whether charter school law allows a charter to open a second location. Instead, it only examined whether the charter school included sufficient information about the locations, including a description of the facilities.

Because the parties in the Dual Language appeal didn't discuss descriptions of the facilities, the Montessori case law didn't apply, the appeal board said.

The two sides had previously discussed the charter school leasing the vacant Rosemont school on Pennsylvania Avenue from the district. But district officials believed the charter was looking to relocate entirely and didn't know until shortly before the school board vote in August that the charter planned to operate in two separate buildings, Bethlehem board President Michael Faccinetto said.

The school board likely would have approved a proposal to move all of the students to one larger building, Faccinetto said.